Imprisonment is the most serious form of punishment available to the State and prisons have existed for hundreds of years. Yet until relatively recently, judicial intervention in prison life was virtually non-existent. However, in the last two decades there has been a large volume of litigation on prisoners' rights, both in Ireland the United Kingdom. A number of cases have also been brought before the European Court of Human Rights. This is a rapidly expanding area of law and this book outlines the law as it relates to prisoners in the Republic of Ireland.